Fixing the VALORANT Black Screen: A Windows PC Guide

Fixing the VALORANT black screen starts with identifying what went blank: the game window, the entire Windows desktop, or the display after switching apps. Restart the PC first, then test the relevant display, driver, and game-file fixes below. Change one thing at a time so you can tell which adjustment helped.

This guide covers VALORANT on a Windows PC. A black screen alone does not identify a single cause, and no fix here is guaranteed. Riot documents both launch-time black screens and displays that turn black during gameplay, with different troubleshooting paths for each.

Choose the right troubleshooting path

Riot's PC crash guide includes black screens at launch. Its separate black-screen-during-game guide applies when the game loaded successfully before the image disappeared. If your PC has never run VALORANT, compare it with the official PC requirements before reinstalling anything.

1. Recover the display and restart cleanly

If you can still use Windows, close VALORANT and the Riot Client, save work in other applications, and choose Start > Power > Restart. After Windows restarts, open the Riot Client, let any pending game update finish, and try launching again. Use Restart rather than repeatedly clicking Play while the previous launch remains stuck.

If the entire display is black, try Windows+Ctrl+Shift+B to reset the graphics driver. A beep or flicker can indicate a response. This does not repair game files.

Try Ctrl+Alt+Delete as well. If the security screen appears, open Task Manager or restart normally. For a desktop that remains blank outside the game, follow Microsoft's blank-screen troubleshooting instead of treating it solely as a VALORANT problem.

2. Check the display connection and graphics setup

Separate a monitor problem from a game problem

For an external monitor, check power, selected input, and both ends of its display cable. Turn off the equipment before reseating a cable. If available, test another cable or monitor. On a laptop, disconnect external displays and test the built-in screen. These checks are particularly relevant when the monitor reports no signal.

Update the correct graphics driver

Press Windows+R, enter dxdiag, and open the Display tab to identify your graphics hardware. Use the appropriate NVIDIA, AMD, Intel, or PC manufacturer's official support channel for your model. Install the driver and restart before testing again. Riot's graphics-driver guide provides identification instructions and manufacturer links.

If the problem began immediately after a driver update, Microsoft's guidance also includes rolling back that driver. Record the current version first. A clean driver reinstall is an advanced option in Riot's gameplay black-screen guide; use its linked instructions if a normal update fails.

Use the dedicated GPU and remove custom tuning

On a PC with integrated and dedicated graphics, open Settings > System > Display > Graphics. Select VALORANT, open its graphics options, choose High performance, save, and restart the game. If it is missing, browse to the installed game's executable. Riot's dedicated-GPU guide for Riot games explains this process; the installation path depends on your setup.

Also install pending Windows updates. If you use custom overclocking or tuning, temporarily restore the affected settings to their defaults and restart. Follow Riot's tuning guidance or the hardware manufacturer's instructions rather than changing unfamiliar BIOS settings.

3. Target software conflicts and repair VALORANT

When Alt+Tab triggers the black screen

Riot specifically recommends testing Disable fullscreen optimizations for Alt+Tab-related flickering or black screens. Close the game, right-click the VALORANT executable or shortcut, choose Properties > Compatibility, select that checkbox, and apply the change. Relaunch and reproduce the same app-switching action. Revert the checkbox if it does not help.

This setting is separate from running the game in compatibility mode for an older Windows version. See Riot's VALORANT Alt+Tab troubleshooting guide for the symptom-specific advice.

When background applications may be involved

Temporarily close nonessential overlay, recording, and performance-monitoring applications, then retest. For a more systematic check, follow Riot's Windows clean-boot instructions. A clean boot temporarily reduces background software so you can investigate conflicts.

Keep Vanguard's vgc service enabled. Riot's procedure requires hiding Microsoft services before disabling other services, then re-enabling vgc. VALORANT will not launch with that required service disabled. Record the startup items you change and restore them gradually, testing between changes, if the clean boot helps.

Repair missing or corrupted game files

In the Riot Client, sign in and select the profile icon > Settings > VALORANT > Repair. Follow the prompts, let the repair finish, and test another launch. The Riot Client Full Repair Tool can repair missing or corrupted files; it does not establish that file corruption caused your black screen.

4. Escalate persistent problems with useful evidence

If an error code appears, switch to its specific support article. VAN and VAL are different prefixes, so record the complete message. Use the Vanguard error-code index for VAN errors. A plain black screen is not enough evidence to choose a TPM, Secure Boot, or other security-setting fix.

If the relevant fixes and Repair have failed, consider reinstalling. Close the Riot Client before uninstalling VALORANT through Windows Installed apps. For a clean reinstall, follow the VALORANT section of Riot's uninstall-and-reinstall guide. Read the named folders carefully, preserve any local information you need, and use Riot's official installer afterward.

Before removing local files, collect logs if you plan to contact support. Download Riot Repair Tool (RRT) from Riot's page, run it as administrator on Windows, select VALORANT, and attach the resulting ZIP to your support ticket. Despite its name, RRT's documented role here is gathering logs. It is different from the Riot Client's game-file Repair function.

Check whether the fix holds

Use the same action that previously triggered the problem: launch the game, switch apps, or enter a practice session. Reaching the menu is encouraging, but it does not verify a fix for a problem that only appears during play. Test outside a competitive match before returning to your normal queue.

• Note whether only VALORANT or the entire display went black, and whether audio continued.
• Record the Windows version, GPU model, graphics-driver version, and any complete error message.
• List each change and its result, including changes that did not help.
• If the PC restarts unexpectedly or shows a Windows stop code, record that separately from a game-only black screen.
• If the problem persists, send the details and logs through Riot Player Support.